US Delegation Paid to Praise Narendra Modi

An elite group of American and NRI entrepreneurs who signed up for an India trip that included a meeting with Gujarat chief minister NarendraModi are said to have forked out up to $16,000 per head.

WASHINGTON: An elite group of American and NRI entrepreneurs who signed up for an India trip that included a meeting with Gujarat chief minister NarendraModi are said to have forked out up to $16,000 per head for what was billed as a "seven-star" spin across the country.

The trip, which has attracted immense attention in India because the delegation has three American lawmakers who called on Modi, who Washington has banned from visiting the United States, was put together by a Chicago businessman with ties to the Overseas BJP. An NRI from Punjab, Shalabh Kumar is the chairman and CEO of AVG group of companies which specializes in industrial automation.

Kumar, who describes himself as a Reagan Democrat, has been active in US politics more recently, backing conservatives such as South Carolina's Indian-American governor Nikki Haley and one-time Republican Congressman Joe Walsh. Neither the Indian Embassy in Washington nor the US Embassy in New Delhi was involved in the trip which appeared to be an entirely private enterprise.

According to an account in the Chicago-based ethnic newspaper "Hi India," Kumar canvassed for the trip through an invitation from the National Indian-American Public Policy Institute (NIAPPI). As per the invitation, the trip was "limited to (an) elite group of American business persons" who would be guests of the Gujarat government on March 28 and attend a dinner hosted by Modi.

This would be followed by a visit to 'Gandhi Smarak,' a stay at the Lake Palace in Udaipur, a visit to Karnataka as guests of the state government and a trip to Tirupati, a visit to the Taj Mahal, the tiger reserve at Ranthambore, a night at the Rambhag Palace, a visit to the Golden Temple in Amritsar and a dinner hosted by Punjab chief minister Prakash Singh Badal, and a "Bollywood Extravaganza."

The cost options given in the invitation were: 7 star trip-(business class travel, private air charter) $16,000 per person and $29,000 per couple; 4 star trip (commercial travel in India with visits to the palace excluded) $10,000 per person; and Economy option -- with all travel and hotel expenses at the individual's cost --$3000 per person.

At a press conference held in Chicago prior to the trip, Kumar had reportedly announced that the delegation would comprise four members of the United States House of Representatives -- Marlin Stutzman, Cyntia Wiederspahn, Cathy Rodgers and Aaron Schock, all from the Republican Party. However, reports from India spoke of only three lawmakers, Schock, Rodgers, and Cynthia Lummis.

It was not clear if the lawmakers paid for the trip. The US has strict rules governing acceptance of gifts and sponsored trips by lawmakers.

The three US Representatives who called on Modi and purportedly pledged to press the administration to lift the visa ban are all relatively young lawmakers who have run their own businesses and blazed an entrepreneurial trail.

Aaron Schock, described as the leader of the group, represents Illinois' 18th Congressional district, a constituency which includes the city of Peoria, which is the world headquarters of Caterpillar Inc., and also a byword for Middle America. Lummis and Rodgers represent district that include the small cities of Cheyenne in Wyoming and Spokane in Washington State respectively.